Rihanna Poses For Stylish Vogue Spread ‘I Never Wanted To Be Famous!’

Just a week after Rihanna’s third American Vogue cover in four years leaked online, the full spread has finally been released and she looks gorg! For the March 2014 issue, she poses in numerous high fashion pieces that represent her risk-taking style, that ranges from tomboy chic to runway queen. The interview was conducted by Vogue’s Plum Sykes, who trailed Rihanna on a shopping trip in New York City, while getting the tea on Ri’s new move to the Big Apple. Rihanna also opened up about her tomboy style when she was younger, never really wanting to be famous, and knowing that there are chicks out there who have more talent, but she is able to connect more with her fans through her fashion, which is a big part of who she is.

Catch a few of the highlights, plus pics from the spread below:

On if she wears underwear

“If I’m wearing a top, I don’t wear a bra. If I’m wearing a bra, I just wear a bra.”

On loving men’s fashion since she was a teenager

“When I was thirteen or fourteen, I didn’t want to wear what my mom wanted me to wear. I was very much a boy in my style, my demeanor. All my friends were guys. I loved things that boys did. I loved being easy with my clothes. I loved wearing hats and scarves and snapbacks on my head. It was my way of rebelling. I wanted to dress like my brother. After a while, it was just easier for Mom to dress us both the same. We wore the same jeans, the same T-shirts. I don’t go out of my way to be a rebel or to have that perception, but a lot of the decisions I make, a lot of the direction I want to move, is against the grain, or against society’s tight lane, and I’m aware of that sometimes. It might not be fitting with the norm, but that’s OK for me.”

“I’d never want to dress anyone exactly like me. I just want you to be you with some Rihanna inspiration. Girl! You need to be sassified!!!”

On her baggy clothes style

“It’s fierce. This is dope leather. More than anything, I like a jacket. You can do anything with a great jacket, the bigger the better. You can have any silhouette underneath. It gives you an attitude. It makes a gown look cool. I love baggy things. I wear men’s clothes, men’s shoes, oxfords, creepers.[…] You will never be stylish if you don’t take risks. If you go into a men’s shop and try something, they would look at you like, that’s a bad bitch,”

On growing up wanting to sing, but not wanting to be famous

“I did sing a lot as a child. A lot. I practiced hard to maneuver my voice. I love singing. I love it, and it doesn’t feel like a chore. It’s an expression. I never wanted to be famous. I just wanted my music to be heard all over the world. Then it happened and the fame came with it. I can’t ever imagine feeling used to it.”

On other singers being better than her

“It’s not all down to my voice. There’s people with way more talent than I when it comes to singing. Bigger voices. But people want to know who you are. Fashion is a clear indication, a way to express your attitude, your mood.”

On her wigs and always changing her hairstyle

“It’s not my hair, but the girl who donated it, she’s the bomb. Black girls never let anyone see this,” she adds, pulling apart the locks at the back of her head to show me the intricate workings of the false hair, which is woven into a net attached to her own. “I have two main hair people I work with. They’re always with me. I’m like, ‘I’m bored! I wanna change my hair!’ That’s the good thing about a weave. You can do whatever with it.”

On her religious beliefs

“I have a very firm relationship with God and I believe in Jesus, and I stick to that.”

On moving to NYC

“I’ve downsized. I want a smaller closet. I want simpler. I want to just take it back to what’s important.[…]When I’m on tour, if I walk out of the hotel to go to Starbucks, it’s like, thousands of fans are walking there with me. It’s a lot. And that’s why I don’t do much on tour. I just hide out in my hotel.”